Chapter 17: Laura Is Guilty!
(The scene skips to the courthouse. The date is November 25, 2008. Brena and Sharka arrive and see Allison Lang with Jaddo. Aladar was standing on all four legs at the open door.) * Brena: Oh, my God! There she is! * Sharka: We came to see your trial! * Brena: Look how cute. There's a judge and everything. * Sharka: And jury people. Vote for Jaddo! * Raven: Ladies, take a seat. * Brena: Go, girl. * Raven: Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, so help you God? * Jaddo: I do. * Raven: Be seated. (The people do so.) Mrs. Lang, you may begin your questioning. * Allison Lang: First of all I would like to point out that not only is there no proof in this case, but there is a complete lack of mens rea, which by definition tells us there can be no crime without a vicious will. * Raven: I am aware of the meaning of mens rea. What I'm unaware of is why you're giving me a vocabulary lesson when you should be questioning your witness. * Allison Lang: Yes, Your Honor. (Allison moves towards Laura, the Alpha Gang lady with the pink hair.) * Allison Lang: Laura, when you arrived back at the house... was the Carnotaurus good before he was brainwashed? * Laura: Not that I saw, but like I said, I went straight upstairs to take a shower. * Allison Lang: And when you came downstairs, what happened? * Laura: Aladar saw Rex's dinosaur standing over a civilian's body drenched in his blood. * Allison Lang: But Orrin didn't have a gun? * Laura: No. She'd stashed it by then. * Worjo: Move to strike that from the record, Your Honor. It's speculation. * Raven: So stricken. Go ahead. * Allison Lang: Laura, did you see some magic? * Laura: No. I was in the shower. * Allison Lang: So, sometime in the 20 minutes that you were in the shower, the Carnotaurus was being mind-controlled into attacking Aladar, Baylene, Eema and Url. * Laura: I guess. * Allison Lang: The Carnotaur was brainwashed while you were in the shower, but you didn't hear the magic thing because...because you were in the shower? * Laura: I was washing my hair. * Milal: (whispering to Halka) Where is she going with this? * Halka: Have a little faith, Milal. * Allison Lang: Laura, what had you done earlier that day? * Laura: I got up, got a latte, went to the gym, got a perm, and came home. * Allison Lang: Where you got in the shower? * Raven: I believe the witness has made it clear that she was in the shower. (Nosoo, Brena, Sharka and Cullin start to giggle.) * Allison Lang: Yes, Your Honor. Laura, had you ever gotten a perm before? How many would you say? * Laura: Two a year since I was 6. You do the math. * Allison Lang: (to the audience) A girl in my sorority, Tracy Marcinko, got a perm once. We all tried to talk her out of it. Curls weren't a good look for her. She didn't have your bone structure. But, thankfully, that same day, she entered the Beta Delta Pi wet T-shirt contest where she was completely hosed down from head to toe. * Graki: (raising her arm and standing up) Objection! Why is this relevant? * Allison Lang: I have a point, I promise. * Graki: Then make it. * Allison Lang: Yes, ma'am. * Allison Lang: Laura, why were Tracy Marcinko's curls ruined when she got hosed down? * Laura: Because they got wet? * Allison Lang: Exactly. Isn't it the first cardinal rule of perm maintenance that you're forbidden to wet your hair for at least 24 hours after getting a perm at the risk of deactivating the ammonium thioglycolate? * Laura: Yes. * Allison Lang: And wouldn't somebody who's had, say, 30 perms in their life be well aware of this rule? And if in fact you weren't washing your hair as I suspect, because your curls are still intact, wouldn't you have seen the magic you were doing? * Laura: No. * Allison Lang: And if in fact you had heard the gunshot, Orrin wouldn't have had time to hide the gun before you got downstairs, which would mean you would have had to have found Orrin with a gun in her hand to make your story plausible. Isn't that right? * Laura: (enraged) She's my age! Did she tell you that? And would you feel if your father married someone your age? * Allison Lang: (her speaking voice getting more serious) You, however, had time to hide the gun after you brainwashed the Carnotaurus and used him to murder some people and Wilka. * Laura: (enraged) I didn't mean to brainwash him. (pointing a finger at Orrin) I thought it was you walking through the door! (The crowd gasps. Raven pounds the table three times. Allison is stunned.) * Raven: Order! Order! Order! * Allison Lang: Oh, my God. * Graki: Oh, my God. * Raven: Oh, my God. Worjo, take the witness into custody where she will be charged for the murder of Wilka and the brainwashing of the Carnotaurus. In the matter of The State vs. Star Sapphire (Orrin), this case is dismissed. Orrin, you are free to go. (The crowd cheers. Allison hugs Orrin while Laura is taken to Arkham for her crimes.) '' * '''Teyro:' Ha ha! Yeah! * Worjo and Jaddo: Yeah! * Halka: She did it! Ha ha! * Aladar: Ally! Ally! (The scene cuts to Universal Studios where the reporters are with Aladar, Eema, Baylene, Url and the heroes.) * Female Reporter: Allison, how did you know Laura was lying? * Orrin: Because she's brilliant, of course. * Allison Lang: The rules of hair care are simple and finite. Any Cosmo Girl would have known. * Jaddo: I just wanted to say that you were so brilliant in there. And that I was wrong. And you are the girl for me. * Allison Lang: Really? * Jaddo: Pooh Bear...I love you. * Allison Lang: I've waited so long to hear you say that. But if I'm gonna be a partner at a law firm by the time I'm 30, I need a boyfriend who's not such a complete bonehead. * Aladar: Thank you, guys. Category:Scenes Category:Action Scenes Category:Horror Scenes Category:Mystery Scenes Category:Pienado